Meet Our CEO, Joey Cheek

Joey Cheek is the founder and CEO of SmartSolar.org. He is a two-time USA Olympic gold-medalist in speed skating (2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games and 2006 Turin Winter Games) and a Princeton University graduate, where he studied economics and Chinese.

Cheek has always been passionate about philanthropy. He is the co-founder and president of Team Darfur, an international coalition of athletes committed to raising awareness about and bringing an end to the crisis in Darfur, Sudan. Cheek donated his USOC gold medal winnings, along with other competition winnings, to Right to Play, an athlete-driven international humanitarian organization, encouraging other athletes to follow in his footsteps.

We Are SmartSolar.org

SmartSolar.org has one mission: making solar simple for all. Every day, our talented team works hard to provide more choices, more education, and more opportunity for homeowners to install a solar panel system at the best price.

Our company was founded to help homeowners all across the United States understand the incredible benefits of installing solar panels, including the environmental and economic advantages that going solar can provide. We do this by helping consumers analyze their personal energy usage and connecting them with the best solar installers in the country.

Over the course of your solar energy journey with SmartSolar.org, we will equip you with the education, tools, and guidance to design a home that will generate energy for decades. Not only will you make a difference in battling climate change, but you will also save money along the way. Ready to get started?

The climate has experienced dramatic changes over the past 40 years. After living in Colorado, Joey witnessed a dramatic increase in wildfires, which went from occurring every decade to occurring multiple times in one year. Solar energy is not only good for the economy, but it also makes a big difference in the fight against climate change.

As a new parent, Joey has an even greater motivation to help make the world a better place.

“My wife and I recently had a son,” he shared. “I know we’re making a small dent in this problem, and a lot more needs to be done, but I couldn’t stand the thought that through my inaction, he might live in a less and less hospitable world.”

How Does Solar Reduce the Cost of Electricity Bills?

Not only does solar energy benefit the planet, but it also benefits you financially, too. If you are currently paying for grid energy, then you are likely paying a lot more than you would be for solar.

The price of electricity is measured in cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national average price for electricity in July 2022 was $0.166 per kWh. In San Francisco, a bigger metropolis area, electricity costs $0.311 per kWh.

Factoring in the discounts and the 30% Federal Solar Tax Credit, the average price of solar purchased is between $0.06 and $0.08 per kWh. That’s less than half of the national average and nearly four times less than the price of grid electricity in San Francisco.